St David's Chapel originally in St David's Street Cardiff, Wales, UK is now the Roman Catholic St. David's Metropolitan RC Cathedral and sited on Charles Street, Cardiff. Witnesses were James Barry (Catherine's mother was Mary Barry, so perhaps an uncle?) and David Scannell

This certificate is also very important as it's the first documentary evidence we have that Edward (Edmund) Ryan's father was called Patrick. Jane's [Alspach]Family Tree dated 1995 suggests that Edmund's father was called Patrick, now we have the evidence. [L. Ryan 12/22/2009]

This is the Church in which John and Amelia were married in 1875. It is the oldest Catholic Church in Cardiff and situated on St Peter's Road, Roath, Cardiff. Aunt Mary told me that she thought that no one from either family attended the service as Amelia was Wesleyan Methodist and she was marrying into the Roman Catholic faith. Amelia (Thomas) is listed as living in 44 Parade Cardiff - this is one block away from St Peter's Church. [L. Ryan 12/22/2009]

This is the Church in which John and Amelia were married in 1875. It is the oldest Catholic Church in Cardiff and situated on St Peter's Road, Roath, Cardiff. Aunt Mary told me that she thought that no one from either family attended the service as Amelia was Wesleyan Methodist and she was marrying into the Roman Catholic faith. Amelia (Thomas) is listed as living in 44 Parade Cardiff - this is one block away from St Peter's Church. [L.Ryan 12/22/2009]

Amelia and John Patrick Ryan Nick Bradley owns the attached photo which was passed on from his mother Millie Ryan Bradley. No names on the back, but our collective best guess is that this is a photo of the young Ryan couple John Patrick and Amelia sometime in the 1880s. The pose is typically Victorian - no smiles and very serious poses in Sunday best clothes. [L. Ryan 11/19/2009]
The photo has been professionally restored. Aunt Mary Ryan Taylor, who never met them of course, says that there are remarkable family resemblances. She also thought this photo may well be a wedding photo which would date it at 1875. The young couple are certainly in their finest clothes. If it is a wedding photo Amelia would be 25 and John Patrick 23. [L. Ryan 11/23/2010]

Saint Augustine's Church, Penarth, Wales, UKSt Augustine's Parish Church, Penarth, again mentioned in Aunt Mary's 'Brief History' - family graves Jane and Samuel Thomas and, of course, Amelia and John Patrick Ryan - plus more maybe - not sure. Also the venue for the 2000 Ryan reunion celebration service and probably a lot more - I'll check this with Mary - I suspect that she and Tom were married there. [L. Ryan 4/1/2010]

Amelia and John Patrick Ryan Nick Bradley owns the attached photo which was passed on from his mother Millie Ryan Bradley. No names on the back, but our collective best guess is that this is a photo of the young Ryan couple John Patrick and Amelia sometime in the 1880s. The pose is typically Victorian - no smiles and very serious poses in Sunday best clothes. [L. Ryan 11/19/2009]
The photo has been professionally restored. Aunt Mary Ryan Taylor, who never met them of course, says that there are remarkable family resemblances. She also thought this photo may well be a wedding photo which would date it at 1875. The young couple are certainly in their finest clothes. If it is a wedding photo Amelia would be 25 and John Patrick 23. [L. Ryan 11/23/2010]

31 Dock Street, Cogan, Penarth, Wales, UKTwo more pics for the site - this time the small terraced home in Dock Street Cogan, Penarth where John and Amelia Ryan set up home in 1875 - he was 22 and she was 24. Eight children were born to them - two died young; Sarah in 1879 and Samuel in 1888 - it is highly likely that Amelia never recovered from the birth and early death of Samuel (registered death as 0 months old) - she died within six months of Samuel's birth. Then tragically John died two years later from an accident at work resulting in a tetanus infection. Six Ryan children were orphaned.

Mary Ann Street, Cardiff, Wales, ca 1893The street where Edmund and Catherine Ryan kept the Maid of Erin pub and boarding house. The old buildings have now gone and made way for the Cardiff International Arena and the Park Inn Hotel

Beach Road Penarth in the 1900s - 1910sThe entrance to Alexandra Park from Beach Road, Penarth. Photo ca 1900s - 1910s - a park that must have been well known to all residents in Penarth. Alexandra Park, Penarth is a well-preserved Edwardian urban public park. It is in an attractive location overlooking the Bristol Channel, retaining its layout and many of its original features. The park was laid out quickly between 1901 and 1902.

Windsor Road, Penarth ca 1908Windsor Road, Penarth ca 1908 - the principal road running from Cogan (where our 'Founding Family' of Ryans lived) to Penarth. The main shops were and are located here. The road continues as Windsor Terrace and then into Beach Road which leads to the Esplanade.

Penarth DocksPenarth Docks at the height of its importance ca. 1900. John Patrick Ryan (1852-90) worked there as a shipwright and it was there that he probably sustained the injury that led to tetanus resulting from a deep cut or wound which led to his early death at the age of 38. The six Ryan children were orphaned.

John Patrick Ryan, 1852-90. Report of deathWestern Mail 01 Mar 1890 reports John Patrick Ryan's death at Cardiff Royal Infirmary, from lockjaw as a result of an accident at work in Penarth Docks where a fellow workman inadvertently hit John Patrick's little finger with a hammer. He died from a tetanus infection on 27 Feb 1890 leaving the six young Ryan children as orphans

The Irish in Cardiff in the Nineteenth CenturyA brief history of the Irish in Cardiff in the 19th century extracted from the writings of Owen John Thomas and first published in The Green Dragon edition 1 Winter 1996. Footnotes added by Les Ryan

Notes

John was a shipwright[carpenter] He died in 1890 aged 38 when tetanus set in following an accident at work. His wife Amelia had died two years earlier following complications in childbirth. The orphaned children: Catherine, Jane, Ellen, Edward and John were taken in by Samuel and Jane Thomas who lived in 5 Salop Place, Penarth, Wales, UK. They were the children's maternal grandparents. The Ryan side of the family were unable to help as they were running the public house and boarding house, The Maid of Erin, 48 Mary Ann Street, Cardiff, Wales, UK.